The North Gauteng High Court found for former ANC Limpopo provincial treasurer, Danny Msiza, reviewing and setting aside adverse findings contained in five paragraphs of advocate Terry Motau’s “The Great Bank Heist” report on VBS looting. This decision has now been overturned.
In August 2020, Judge Vivian Tlhapi declared Motau’s failure to afford Msiza the right to procedural fairness prior to the release of the report unlawful and unconstitutional.
The South African Reserve Bank’s Prudential Authority, which commissioned Motau’s probe, appealed and last month North Gauteng High Court Judge Jan Swanepoel upheld the appeal and substituted the order with costs.
Judge Swanepoel found that Motau’s failure to afford Msiza an opportunity to be heard was not irrational and thus passed the test under the issue of legality.
In another matter, ex-ANC Youth League leader in Limpopo, Kabelo John Matsepe, were also unsuccessful in a separate lawsuit against the Finance Minister, Enoch Godongwana, the Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister, Thembi Nkadimeng, National Director of Public Prosecution, Shamila Bathohi, and the South African Local Government Association.
Matsepe was sequestrated late last year after failing to pay the SA Revenue Service about R61.5 million. The high court upheld its previous dismissal of his application to quash his VBS-related criminal charges.
He was identified as the middleman facilitating a number of municipalities to wrongfully invest ratepayers’ funds with VBS.
The dismissal of Matsepe’s application has paved the way for the main trial to start next month.
The trial will start on 17 July.
Fourteen municipalities in Limpopo, North West, and Gauteng invested about R1.6 billion with VBS.
The NPA has already enrolled six cases in respect of seven municipalities, with a further 13 municipalities under investigation.